Shopping centre operator Majid Al Futtaim has partnered with Binance, a blockchain environment with an infrastructure for cryptocurrency trading.
The partnership allows Majid Al Futtaim to capitalise on growing Web 3.0 technologies, and harness and integrate them into their retail avenues.
“The exponential rate of technology development today is matched only by consumers’ voracious appetite for exceptional customer experiences in both the physical and digital world,” said Alain Bejjani, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim.
“We are delighted to be partnering with global Web3 leader, Binance, on the new frontiers of customer engagement and experience and look forward to working in tandem to evolve the third generation of web technology, develop strong capabilities and deliver innovation and world-class omnichannel experiences to our customers.”
Web 3.0 is the latest Internet service powered by blockchain technology and artificial intelligence, allowing users to operate using cryptocurrencies, NFTs and other versions of decentralised finance.
Binance will provide a digital wallet infrastructure for Majid Al Futtaim customers to hold virtual assets from multiple platforms.
Various retail products of Majid Al Futtaim will be available on Binance’s marketplace as NFTs.
The partnership also entails the integration of Binance Pay, Binance’s contactless, borderless, user-to-user payment scheme where consumers and merchants use cryptocurrency without paying additional costs, into Majid Al Futtaim’s Web 3.0 presence.
Web 3.0 users can use Binance Pay to purchase virtual assets from Majid Al Futtaim’s outlets.
“Majid Al Futtaim is one of the most prestigious businesses in the Middle East and has millions of customers every year,” said Changpeng Zhao, CEO and co-founder of Binance.
“Integrating Web3 technologies will give its customers access to innovative new ways to engage with its brands and provide new ways to play.
“Through partnerships like these, we will see the innovative use-cases that come to define the next digital era emerge, and Majid Al Futtaim is positioned to become a trailblazer in bridging the gap between physical and Web3 experiences.”
In April, Binance’s market value was placed at $92.5 billion by Forbes.
This year, NFT marketplaces have seen $37 billion traded, a significant increase from last year’s total exchange value of $40 billion, per reports by blockchain data platform Chainalysis.
Marketplaces operating in the Middle East recorded spiked activity in the middle of last year, but have since stabilised and now account for 5 per cent of global Web 3.0 traffic.
